I defend my master's thesis tomorrow. But this post is not…

I defend my master's thesis tomorrow. But this post is not about that. this post is about the journey I began more than two years ago when I set out to interview men from Afghanistan who became refugees in the United States. The men I interviewed shared their stories with me in ways that has altered me in ways I had never imagined. You need to speak to a survivor of war who is permanently dislocated from his watan (homeland) to really appreciate the luxury of revisiting home. From being a whiney-ass kid tired of how much India changed every time I visited it, I grew to appreciate that I at least had a watan to return to, a watan that does not get carpet-bombed every now and then.

I saw a video today, about a flash mob in Mumbai's CST station (or Bombay's VT station, depending on what you have grown accustomed to) and a tear welled up and balanced itself precariously as I deeply missed home and also thought of how much the Afghan men who entered my life two years have helped me appreciate every little thing about India. Thank you for being wonderful teachers of what Home really means.